In the Olympics, if opposing athletes continuously broke the rules while the officials let them get away with it, American fans would want our coaches to raise a fuss. That’s what has been happening in the arena of international trade, and President Donald Trump is rightly calling out our competitors for unfair play.
In response, we have been slapped with unjust retaliatory tariffs, aimed disproportionately at American farmers. President Trump has pledged to stand by American farmers, and the Department of Agriculture is helping to fulfill that promise. We will aid our producers in mitigating trade damages caused by retaliation, which is a short-term solution to give the president time to work on trade deals to benefit agriculture and all sectors of the American economy in the long run. President Trump is taking action on trade policy to open markets so American farmers can compete globally.
Instead of retaliatory tariffs, the correct Chinese response would be to stop their bad behavior. The Trump administration’s action to stand by our agricultural producers is a clear message that China cannot bully farmers to coerce the United States to cave in.
This op-ed was published by USA Today on July 25, 2018.
